TORONTO – “Thanks, but no thanks.”
That, more or less, was British Columbia’s dumbfounding response this week upon removing Vancouver’s BC Place as a prospective stadium to host World Cup matches in 2026, leaving Toronto, Montreal and Edmonton as Canada’s only potential host cities.

… Sebastian Giovinco isn’t just the best player in Major League Soccer. He’s the biggest difference-maker in CONCACAF right now – a designation some contend is reactionary in the wake of Tuesday night’s result.

The beef between FIFA and the B.C. government is mindful of a hockey story from a few years ago.
We’re a little fuzzy about the details, but it seems a fight erupted between two players — let’s say Darcy Tucker and Matthew Barnaby — who weren’t especially popular with their colleagues.

So much for the calm before the storm.
The Regina Pats and Swift Current Broncos got together Friday night for a game that would have been relatively meaningless if not for the unavoidable fact that the same teams will meet again next week in the WHL playoffs.

MANCHESTER, England — Manchester United thrashed Everton 4-0 after scoring three goals in the final 10 minutes on a miserable return to Old Trafford for Wayne Rooney in the Premier League on Sunday. United was only leading through Antonio Valencia’s 4th-minute strike when Rooney, the former United captain, was substituted in the 82nd minute. Henrikh […]

BERLIN — The Bundesliga’s first female referee oversaw a 1-1 draw between Hertha Berlin and Werder Bremen on Sunday. Bibiana Steinhaus, who has a decade’s experience of refereeing in Germany’s second division, made her debut in the top flight – an occasion celebrated by the home side with a limited offer of half-price tickets for […]

LONDON — Perhaps it’s just a clever ploy to sell the caffeine-packed drinks produced by the competition’s title sponsor. Domestic supporters of English clubs wanting to instantly discover their next opponent in the League Cup will have to be awake at 4:15 a.m. on Thursday. The second-ranked cup competition’s draw masters aren’t pulling an all-nighter. […]